demonstrations

Thousands of Ukrainians took the streets of Kyiv on Sunday in the biggest anti-government protests in years, after Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovich failed to sign a landmark pact with the European Union in favour of closer economic cooperation with Moscow, Ukraine's Soviet-era overlord.

EU citizens feel insecure and that their voices aren't reaching the ears of their political leaders despite sometimes violent demonstrations. Desperation is growing in several EU countries, says Gilbert Fayl.

Thousands of demonstrators marched through Paris yesterday (30 September) against a European fiscal pact, the first major display of public anger to face President François Hollande since his May election.

Around 50 thousand trade union members marched across Brussels on Friday to protest against austerity measures. In response to the current financial crisis, the newly formed Belgian government agreed last week to cut public spending by 11 billion euros and to liberalise labour regulations. The new budget for 2012 has been described by trade unions as "unbalanced" and "unfair".

There is no end in sight to Albania's political crisis and January's fatal demonstrations have shaken what little faith remained among EU leaders and institutions, write Bledar Feta and Dr. Ioannis Armakolas from the 'Athens Working Group: Transforming the Balkans' at the Hellenic Centre for European Studies (EKEM).